Jacksonville Area Police Cited For Wrecking Cruiser at 124 MPH

Jacksonville police have many duties and responsibilities that many of Jacksonville’s citizens ignore or forget. However, one duty that the public does not overlook is public safety, particularly reasonless speeding. If one has been charged with such a crime, one should contact an experienced attorney to aggressively fight for one’s case.

According to the Florida Times-Union, two Putnam County Deputies were fired for driving well over 100 miles per hour on a rural road which posted speed limit was 45 mph. These deputies were responding to a noise complaint and as initial investigation shows, the deputies decided to race.

Jacksonville police crimes normally are reported for something controversial, be it improper evidence tampering, unlawfully discharging firearms, or police brutality. However, unreasonable speeding is one crime that police officers normally cite for but do not self-regulate.

The two police officers said they had been holding on responding to the noise complaint for an hour, and were thus responding quickly to recover time. However, the Putnam County Sheriff’s office believes otherwise. Most police departments have a device in their vehicles called an Automatic Vehicle Locator that helps the police station know the state of their vehicles. This device is similar to the electronic black box that records speeds and engine signal communications sent in the car during normal operation.

According to the Automatic Vehicle Locator, one officer was going 124 mph and the other was going 119 mph. The first officer tried to pass, and during this pass, the officer hit a concrete median and damaged his vehicle. The Sheriff’s office said that there was no need for these officers to be speeding that fast. The Sheriff’s office has since fired these two officers; however, the actions of these officers may be in question criminally.

These officers have broken Florida’s reckless driving laws, and will be subject to some possible scrutiny from the legal system as well as the court of public opinion. However, these officers still need a defense. If these officers are to be held to any standard, it should be the standard of the law, not the standard of public opinion. Should these officers end up being charged criminally, or if this kind of situation arise in a private citizen’s own personal life, one should contact an experienced Jacksonville police crimes attorney to fight for one’s case and ensure one’s rights are protected.

The Forbess Law Firm has been aiding clients who face criminal charges in Jacksonville for more than a decade and are here to provide aggressive criminal defense to anyone accused of a crime. If you or a loved one require a Jacksonville criminal defense lawyer, contact our firm today. We are available through our website or by calling us at 904-634-0900.